This is a reading from chapter five of my book. The book is entitled Synopsis of Biblical Truths. This chapter in the book is entitled Synoptic Proofs of Scripture, and the first part of this chapter is about the Masoroth and will be divided into four readings. The story of the Masoroth is more and more amazing. as you continue to learn of the truths contained in the Mazaroth, so I encourage you to listen to each one as they become available. I will begin reading part one of this chapter now. Synoptic Proofs of Scripture. This chapter was not written to prove God to anyone. Believers will believe without proof And unbelievers will not believe or trust in God, even if he confronted them face to face, as he has already done. Even if I did change your mind about God, changing your mind is not changing your heart, which is true repentance. God changes men's hearts by applying his spirit to men's hearts through his word. His word brings knowledge of God to men, but His Spirit applies this knowledge to their hearts, makes it real, and brings about real change in men's hearts. Christians proclaim truth, but God applies it to men's hearts. This chapter is meant to proclaim truth concerning God. I trust that God will apply it to men's hearts as He sees fit. This chapter is meant to be used by God as a tool of evangelism and as a means of strengthening the faith and increasing the joy of believers. In short, to feed the sheep. As Christ said in his own way to Peter, if you love me, feed my sheep. That's John chapter 21, verses 16 and 17. This chapter is also not meant to be exhaustive. It would take an immense library to even begin to cover this topic. I do hope that it will spark an interest in people to look further into some of the topics covered in this chapter. This chapter will have different sections with each section dealing with different types or categories of biblical proofs. I am sure that many people could come up with many categories and subcategories, but I only intend to introduce the topic of Biblical proofs. I do not intend to make a career of researching and writing about Biblical proofs, as there are already many working in this area. Section 1 – The Masoroth Just in case you are not aware, God has always been. God has always had a witness to himself. Adam talked with God and he lived for 950 years. Enoch was a man who taught people about God. Noah taught people about God and he also lived for 950 years. He lived over 350 years after the flood. Job, who was probably a contemporary of Abraham, knew God well. None of these people had a Bible. Job did not write his book based on anything he had read or learned from the Bible, because there was no Bible at that time. Where did Job get his knowledge of God? Word of mouth? How did the writer of Job write in such a manner as to be in complete agreement with the rest of Scripture when there was no Scripture to learn from? We all know how unreliable word-of-mouth communication can be, especially a topic like God. There was a written communication about God before the Bible, and that written communication is still around today. It is known as the Masoroth. If you are unfamiliar with the term, you probably do have some familiarity with the subject, because every society on earth since the beginning has had some familiarity with the subject. It has been altered to some degree or another in each culture to which it has been passed down, and even more so through time. As men of today try to create their own meaning from the scripture, men of the past corrupted God's original means of communication about himself. The Masoroth has come to be known in its current form as the Zodiac. People use it today to try to learn something of their future or to predict the occurrence of events. The Bible teaches against divination. This use is condemned in scripture. The Masoroth was never intended for this purpose. It was, in its original form, meant to teach men about God. If you doubt its ability to do that, read what I have written before you make your decision. There are many biblical proofs, and I could have easily skipped over this one. especially considering the length required to describe the Masoroth, but its description is an excellent way to teach the Word of God and I always like to take advantage of an opportunity to do that. This is too good of an opportunity to teach about our Savior to pass up. If you desire to learn of Christ and you are new to His Word, then this is also too good of an opportunity for you to pass up. The text is here before you. Take advantage of it. The Sphinx of Egypt is inspired by the Maserath. The Maserath starts with Virgo, the virgin, and ends with Leo, the lion. The Sphinx is a woman's head and a lion's body. There are Egyptian versions of the zodiac discovered from ancient Egypt, just as there are different ancient versions found around the world. Zodiacs are found in the ancient cultures of China, India, and South America. I will use the term zodiac at times because the original Mazaroth is not completely intact any longer. However, There is enough of the original truth left in its meaning to be a valuable tool in learning biblical doctrine. Josephus gave witness to the Jewish understanding that the inventors of that peculiar sort of wisdom which is concerned with heavenly bodies and their order were of the family of Seth in his Jewish Antiquities, Book 1, Chapter 2. William Whiston, Wadsworth edition, 2006 translation. And King David gives this witness of the Creator's work in the heavens in Psalms chapter 19 verses 1 through 6. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. there is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard. Their line has gone out through all the earth in their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it, and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof. What is the glory of God referred to here by King David in verse one? God's creation is a secondary glory. God's glory is seen most completely and illustriously in the work of Christ. The heavens declare the glory of God, and His work is displayed in the work of Christ. This declaration is heard by all regardless of their language, because it is not a spoken language, but a story in the heavens that can be told in any language The line that David speaks of is the elliptic, which is the line of constellations that circle the earth, and the line from which the sun dwells and shines forth upon us. David speaks of the sun being in a circuit. It is probably safe to say that many, if not most, college graduates in this world today do not know that the sun is in a circuit around the center of the Milky Way galaxy. but David knew it. Men of his age knew it. David's background was that of a simple shepherd. So much for the modern educational system of our day. David also knew the story of the Maseroth. A more comprehensive book on the subject was written by E. W. Bullinger in 1893, entitled The Witness of the Stars. The book breaks down the message of the Masoroth into three books, each with four chapters, and each chapter with three sections. I will use his structure and some of his content, except in a more brief manner and in a little different style to tell the story of the Masoroth. But first, there is some information about the structure of the Zodiac that must be understood. The Zodiac contains 12 constellations. Each constellation fits into a specific month in the original 360-day calendar of 12 30-day months. These constellations have pictures superimposed upon them in order to tell a story. These 12 constellations are visible along a line known as the elliptic. The elliptic is on a line that runs through the earth and the sun. Each of the 12 constellations has three other constellations that are associated with it. These associated constellations are called deacons and are also important to the stories of the Maserat. The stars of each constellation have names that aid in the meaning of the constellation and add to the stories. It is also interesting to know that each tribe of Israel had a banner with one of these constellations representing the tribe as noted below. Leo was Judah. Pisces was Simeon. Aquarius was Reuben. Aries was Gad. Taurus was Ephraim and Manasseh. Gemini was Benjamin. Sagittarius was Asher. Scorpio was Dan. Capricornus was Naphtali. And Cancer was Issachar. Libra was Levi. The Magi used information gathered from the stars and taught to them by Daniel about 550 years before the birth of Christ to know when Christ was born. Genesis chapter 1 verse 14 reads, And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and for years. The original Hebrew word the King James Version translates as seasons is moed and the meaning according to Strong's Concordance is an appointment i.e. a fixed time or season, specifically a festival, also a signal as appointed beforehand. The stars were their calendar. and they marked the feast days of Israel. Each feast was given to convey truth about God and was marked by a new moon in a particular sign associated with that month. The new moons in the original 360-day calendar signaled a new month. The new month is the visible crescent moon that occurs and signaled the first day of a new month in the 360-day calendar. When Christ's appointed time had come, the Magi knew because Daniel had taught them the sign that would signal his coming. The Magi were not on a wild goose chase following a star in the sky. They knew what the star meant as evidenced by their asking where they would find the new king when they arrived in Jerusalem and by the gifts they brought to him. In Job chapter 38 verses 31-33 it reads, Canst thou bind the sweet influence of Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion? Canst thou bring forth Maseroth in his season, or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons? Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven? Canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth? God is basically asking Job if he can control the signs given in the heavens by the stars or change the events of which they give testimony. Of course, the answer is no. God controls all things and God is highlighting this by giving Job this example of what God alone controls. It is also obvious from this scripture that Job is familiar with the Masorok, as all cultures of ancient times were, and that there was a message in the heavens. In Luke 21, verse 25, Christ tells his disciples this, And there shall be a sign in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars, and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity the sea and the waves roaring. Revelation chapter 12 verse 1 reads, And there appeared a great wonder in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars. The first sign of the Mazaroth is Virgo, and there are twelve stars at the head of Virgo, and there are occasions when the moon is at the feet of Virgo and the sun is located near the center of the constellation. This verse also points out that this wonder appears in the heaven. The Greek word for heaven here, Oranos, means, according to Strong's Concordance, the vaulted expanse of the sky with all things visible in it. Virgo represents a virgin. The woman in Revelation chapter 12 is with child. This verse refers to the seed of woman mentioned in Genesis chapter 3 verse 15 who comes out of Israel. All people are the seed of men except for Christ. The only way a man can be the seed of woman is if he was born of a virgin. Another sign in the heavens is mentioned in verse 3 and 4. This sign is a dragon. One of the constellations of the Mazaroth is Draco. The word Draco is Latin for dragon. Verse 6 refers to this woman fleeing into the wilderness to escape the dragon. Here, the woman represents the nation Israel fleeing into the wilderness to be cared for in a place prepared of God that should feed her there a thousand two hundred and three score days. This is exactly three and one half years of 360 day years and is the time referred to by Christ in Matthew chapter 24 in verse 21 as a time of great tribulation. This wilderness they flee to is named in Daniel chapter 11 verse 41. This verse describes the Antichrist coming into Israel and the people of Israel being protected in an area that is now part of the modern day country of Jordan. So we see that the Maserat is incorporated into the Bible and that there were men before the Bible that knew and understood basic concepts of the one true and living God. Men such as Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and the patriarchs. Job and Moses. Word of mouth alone was not sufficient to teach men the true doctrines of God, but there was another means of communicating the word of God. This communication device was the Maseroth. I want to introduce the three books of the Maseroth as given by E. W. Bullinger in this book so that you will have an idea of where the lesson of the stars will lead. Book 1 is entitled, The Redeemer's First Coming. Book 2 is entitled, The Redemption That Was Purchased. And Book 3 is entitled, The Redeemer's Second Coming and Glory. As you can see, this mirrors the message of the Bible. The amazing message of the Masorette is to follow. Book 1 The Redeemer's First Coming Chapter 1 Virgo Virgo is a virgin, holding a branch in her right hand and stalks of wheat in her left. The story she tells is of the promised seed of the virgin. Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall concede and bear a son. and shall call his name Immanuel. That's Isaiah chapter 7, verse 14. And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. That's Isaiah chapter 11, verse 1. Jesus was born out of the tribe of Judah and from the line of Jesse, King David's father. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous branch, and a king shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. That's Jeremiah chapter 23, verse five. There will be a day when Christ, the anointed, will be king on earth. Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Behold, the man whose name is the branch, and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord. That's Zechariah chapter six, verse 12. Three stars in the constellation of Virgo are Samish, the branch, Zarvizhahve, gloriously beautiful, and Almiridon, who shall come down and reign. Section 1 of Chapter 1 Koma The first deacon of the constellation Virgo is Koma. Koma is pictured as a woman holding a child. And her story is of the desired child of the woman. And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come. And I will fit this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts." That's Haggai chapter 2 verse 7. The ancient Egyptian name for this constellation was Sheznu, the desired son. Modern zodiacs show this constellation as a woman's wig. In the 3rd century BC, Bernice, the wife of Ptolemy III, the king of Egypt at the time, cut her hair and put it in the Temple of Venus. The hair was stolen. To comfort her, it was said that Jupiter took it and made a constellation with it. This was an easy fix because kome in Greek means hair. But Shakespeare seemed to know the original depiction of coma when he wrote in one of his plays that an arrow was shot into heaven to the good boy in Virgo's lap. The Hebrew meaning of coma is the desired one. One of the stars of coma is named Diadem. A diadem is a jeweled crown. According to Chuck Missler, the desire of women for Jewish women was to be the mother of the Messiah as he explains in his exposition of Daniel chapter 11 verse 37. Section 2 of chapter 1 Centaurus Centaurus is the despised sin offering with two natures. He is pictured as a being that is half man and half horse and is pictured with a spear in his right hand and raised and about to be launched to strike his enemy. As God became man, he became one being with two natures. He is truly God and truly man in one person. He is despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, and we hid, as it were, our faces from Him. He was despised and we esteemed Him not. Isaiah 53 The brightest star of this constellation is Alpha Centauri. The ancient Hebrew name of this star is Ptoleman. the heretofore, and the hereafter. I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. That's Revelation chapter one, verse eight. Two Hebrew names for this constellation are Beza, the despised, and as mayeth, a sin offering. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He hath put him to grief, when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. He shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. That's Isaiah chapter 53 verse 10. Section three of chapter one, Bootes. Bootes is a man with a sickle in his left hand and a spear in his right hand. The Greeks called this constellation Bootes, which comes from the Hebrew word bo, which means to come. and otes, which is a Greek suffix indicating the singular as opposed to ota, which indicates the plural. The theme of vootes is, therefore, he who comes. Psalms 96 verse 13 reads, For he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth, he shall judge the world with righteousness and the people with his truth. Arcturus is the brightest star of this constellation. The Hebrew name for this star is Aish, from a root word that means to hasten or to come quickly. Christ is seen to have a sickle in Revelation chapter 14. This constellation is, as all constellations are, another representation of the story of Christ. Chapter 2 Libra Libra is represented by scales, such as the one Lady Justice is depicted as holding. It was originally represented as an altar. Either depiction accurately symbolizes the theme of this constellation, which is the deficiency balanced by the payment in full. The altar is a better representation, however, because the sacrifice of Christ on the cross more than paid for our debt in full. His sacrifice made us joint heirs with Christ. Christ has made it so that we are heirs to his throne and to his kingdom. all God possesses is ours through Christ, just as a bride is joint heir to all her husband is to inherit. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear, but ye have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father, The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit that we are the children of God, and if children, then heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ, if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. Please make sure you pause to reflect on this unspeakable glorious truth. that we share the inheritance of Christ as King, and we, his children, are glorified together with him. This world holds many tribulations, but as the aforementioned verses say, if we suffer with him, we will be glorified with him. This world was never meant to be a bed of roses. not for believers, but our reward, which was paid for by our Savior, makes the troubles of this world not even worth mentioning, as Paul teaches in Romans 8, verse 18, as follows. For I reckon that the suffering of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us. It may be hard for us to see that now, but we will see it soon. The brightest star in this constellation is named Zuban al-Ghanoubi, which means the purchase or price that is found wanting. Our works is the price paid that is found wanting. The second brightest star is named Zubin Shamali, which is the full price. Our Lord and His work on the cross is the price paid that pays in full. And yet another star in the constellation is named Zubin al-Aqra, which means the price of the conflict. There is a price to be paid in the conflict of this world against those who uphold the truth. We fight by standing by the truth of the gospel. The world fights by trying to silence us from telling the truth of the gospel. And I'm going to end the first part of the reading of the Maserath But stay tuned, next month I will record the second part and the Maseroth continues to be more and more amazing as we continue reading through it. And may God bless you and keep you until then.